HC Deb 19 January 1978 vol 942 cc309-10W
Mr. MacGregor

asked the Chancellor of the Exchequer what has been the total number of permanent staff employed in the Inland Revenue for each year since 1945 and for the latest available date; and what was the total number of people paying direct taxes and the number of Revenue employees per direct taxpayer.

Mr. Robert Sheldon

The figures are given in the following table:

Staff in post at end of year* Estimated number of taxpayers†('000s) Number or staff per 10,000 taxpayers
1944–45 35,745 14,500 25
1945–46 43,848 15,250 29
1946–47 49,283 14,000 35
1947–48 49,266 14,600 34
1948–49 49,507 14,500 34
1949–50 49,759 15,050 33
1950–51 52,998 15,800 34
1951–52 53,260 16,150 33
1952–53 51,756 15,400 34
1953–54 51,653 15,900 32
1954–55 50,533 16,550 31
1955–56 51,493 16,300 32
1956–57 51,466 17,100 30
1957–58 52,214 17,350 30
1958–59 52,981 17,690 30
1959–60 55,672 18,370 30
1960–61 58,168 19,250 30
1961–62 57,253 19,850 29
1962–63 58,270 20,130 29
1963–64 58,022 17,810 33
1964–65 57,708 18,490 31
1965–66 59,518 19,330 31
1966–67 62,700 19,960 32
1967–68 65,714 20,010 33
1968–69 65,468 20,720 32
1969–70 68,632 20,570 33
1970–71 69,791 20,040 35
1971–72 71,954 19,680 37
1972–73 70,713 18,930 37
1973–74 69,802 19,810 35
1974–75 74,196 20,530 36
1975–76 80,285 20,950 38
1976–77 83,885 21,150‡ 40
1977–78 84,963 20,400‡ 42
*These are the numbers of permanent staff at 1st April in each year (3rd January for 1978). They do not include staff serving on short period engagements but do include staff, particularly in the valuation offices, who are not normally concerned with the assessment and collection of the direct taxes.
†These are the numbers paying income tax married couples being counted as one, but excluding companies. Most of those paying the other direct taxes, capital gains tax, estate duty etc., also pay income tax but the numbers who do not are not known. This therefore appears to be the best estimate that can be made of the number of people paying direct taxes. The figures do not reflect the substantial growth in the number liable to income tax at the higher rates and to the investment income surcharge, and in the number of working wives.
‡Provisional.

Forward to